Naruto: The New Keyblade Master
by Corruptmonk
Summary: Instead of Sasuke, Naruto was hit by Haku's needles, putting him in a death-like state. He entered his mindscape for the first-time and met Kyuubi face-to-face. However, someone was there that he didn't expect - a legendary warrior from ages past. Sora, the Keyblade Master.
1. Chapter 1

**Naruto: The New Keyblade Master**

**Summary**: _Instead of Sasuke, Naruto was hit by Haku's needles, putting him in a death-like state. He entered his mindscape for the first-time and met Kyuubi face-to-face. However, someone was there that he didn't expect - a legendary warrior from ages past. Sora, the Keyblade Master._

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Naruto or Kingdom Hearts.

**Chapter 01: Merging of Souls**

Naruto was holding on to his waning consciousness after being struck down by dozens of needles from the fake hunter-nin in front of him. He and Sasuke were doing well at first when the two of them decided to work together to bring down Zabuza's accomplice but the plan went down the drain when the purpose of the ice mirrors were revealed to the duo.

The mirrors allowed the fake hunter-nin to travel faster than their eye could see, jumping from one mirror to another while attacking along the way. His Kage Bunshins acted as a shield at first but there were easily dispelled by accurate hits. In the end, the masked shinobi unleashed a full-blown needle assault at him but Sasuke moved from the rear to use his body as a shield to protect his teammate.

However, a deep-seated need to protect his friends welled up inside the blonde that made him push a startled Sasuke out of the path of the attack and accepted every single needle thrown at him. This was the reason why his consciousness was slowly receding, his vision blurring.

The last thing he saw was the fake hunter-nin in one of the mirrors in front of him with a concerned Sasuke trying vainly to keep him awake.

Glad that he saved his friend, he happily succumbed to unconsciousness and blacked out.

-x-x-x-x-x-

Naruto was startled when he saw himself standing inside a rather large sewer. He looked around and couldn't help but cringe at the foreboding feeling the place exuded. He looked down to see that his feet were covered in water. He was wearing his usual orange jumpsuit, but without the holes and rips that gave evidence to the battle that he participated before arriving to wherever he was right now.

"Where in the world am I?" the blonde asked out loud, his voice echoing around him. He didn't get any answers nor did he expect to get one considering he was alone.

Deciding to explore, he traversed the empty path without really caring where he was going. His last memory was taking the hits for his teammate and couldn't help but realize that he could be dead already and this could be heaven. If it was, it was too ugly to be called a paradise and cringe at the possibility of what hell looked like if this was really Kami's sanctuary for good souls.

Considering that he didn't have any idea as to where he was going, Naruto decided to simply follow the glowing pipes on one side of the wall. There were two pipes to be exact, one glowing red while the other glowing blue. Curious as to where it led, he decided to pick a direction and started walking, keeping an eye on the pipes just in case.

He didn't know how long he was walking but he finally ended up in a large room. It still looked like a sewer but the only difference there was a large iron cage on the far end. In the middle of the gate where a lock was supposed to be contained a piece of paper with the Kanji of 'Seal' in the middle. He might not be that attentive in class but he listened to those that he found interesting, and _Fuuinjutsu_ that Iruka-sensei described to him was definitely interesting.

However, it wasn't the cage that caught his attention; it was the sound of two voices talking to each other from deep inside the cage. One of the voices was deep and rough, while the other sounded like a teenager. Curious, he walked closer to the cage and tried to focus his eyes to try to pierce the darkness within. Before he could get any closer, the imposing voice made him freeze in his tracks.

"**It seems that my container has finally graced us with his presence."** the voice growled from within the cage.

"_You're right. Took him long enough though I couldn't blame him considering that no one really taught him anything about being your container."_ said the teenage voice.

"Who's there?" shouted Naruto, wanting to know who owned these voices.

"_I guess you're right, Kyuubi, he isn't really that smart. Reminds me of myself when I was still a naïve child back in my world."_ said the teenage voice with a chuckle. _"Well, I should say that he and I should be alike. After all, he is me."_

"K-Kyuubi?" stuttered Naruto, quite afraid of facing the most powerful tailed-beast in the Elemental Nations. "Why are you here?"

"**Why shouldn't I be here?"** Kyuubi asked sarcastically, revealing his gigantic form to the shaken blonde by moving closer to the bars. "**You're precious Yondaime sealed me inside you after all."**

"Sealed?" Naruto asked, confused. "But I'm dead. So there's no way you should be here."

"_Sorry to break it to you, Naruto, but you're not dead."_ said the teenager, finally revealing himself by moving closer to the bars. Naruto finally saw the owner of the voice.

He was around Naruto's age, a teenager, with dark brown hair and bright blue eyes like his own. He was wearing a black and silver outfit, though Naruto thought there were a bit too baggy for his taste. There were too many zippers to count and the silver crown necklace he was wearing on his neck was cool. All in all, the outfit looked good but it would have been better if there were some orange color here and there, it was his favorite after all.

"Who're you?" Naruto asked the teenager who gave him a grin, almost similar to his own fox-like grin. "And what do you mean that I'm not dead?"

"_My name is Sora."_ The teenager introduced himself_. "As to your other question, you're not dead. The person who stuck you full of needles didn't hit any vital areas that would have killed you. Instead, you're in a death-like state. You're body is in a state of hibernation or cold sleep but your mind is still quite active. And in case you ask, we are currently in your mindscape."_

"Mindscape?" asked Naruto, tilting his head to the side in curiosity.

"**It is a place where your mind meets your soul. In most cases, only those who practiced meditation for a long time could reach their mindscape. In your case, since you are my **_**jinchuuriki**_** then you get to have access to your mindscape in order to communicate with me."** explained Kyuubi after he laid down and crossed his front paws in front of him.

"I see." Naruto said with a nod, understanding what his tenant was trying to convey though he was a bit confused as to why the fox wasn't his usual angry self which didn't really fit with the stories he heard regarding the bijuu. Also, people might think of him as stupid but he was far from it. Living alone since he was six years old allowed him to grow in maturity way ahead of his peers. He just didn't like to show it and had no reason to do so. "So this is my mindscape and I am not dead. My next question is…why is Sora here?"

Sora looked at Kyuubi who gave the teenager a glance. The fox gave a huff and proceeded to explain.

"**To put it simply, Sora here is your past self. You believe in reincarnation, correct?" asked Kyuubi. **Naruto nodded.** "Sora here was supposed to be reincarnated into you but the seal that the Yondaime used got in the way. When his soul was about to merge with yours, the seal acted and trapped him here with me. He isn't exactly controlled by the seal as I am but he cannot merge with you without your explicit permission since that is how the seal works." **

"_Also, the delay of the merger would be different. Normally, a reincarnated soul would merge with their future self the second they exited their mother's womb. Since you're no longer one then there's a whole new set of rules in place to follow. I will merge with you, after you give your permission of course, but the result will grant you access to all my memories and abilities."_ finished Sora, picking up from where Kyuubi left off.

Now this caught Naruto's attention. He was curious when he heard that Sora was his past self but his curiosity peaked when the teenager mentioned abilities.

"Abilities? Don't tell me I'm more than a civilian during my past life?" Naruto asked the brown-haired teenager, curiosity lacing his question.

"_Civilian?"_ Sora asked, tilting his head to the side the same way Naruto did earlier. Kyuubi couldn't help but notice the similarities between the two.

"**Civilian, meaning you're a non-shinobi according to the rules of this world. From what you told me of your world, you are more than a civilian; though I would either rank you either as a warrior or a protector considering what you did to save your world from the evils you faced."** Kyuubi explained to him with a shrug. Realization dawned on Sora's face after that explanation.

"_Well, I started out as a civilian but I was born with a power that was unique in my world."_ Sora explained before holding out his hand as if grasping something. Naruto was startled when a blade that looked like an oversized key materialized in a bright light in his counterpart's grip. "This is the Keyblade. In my world, this is said to be the most powerful weapon in existence, allowing the user to open any door, even the door in between worlds. It is indestructible and had many forms depending on the key chain attached at the end. This is its most basic form, the Kingdom Key."

"Wow." whispered Naruto as he eyed the Keyblade in Sora's hands. There was no bladed edge. "If it's a weapon then why doesn't it have any sharp edge?"

"_The Kingdom Key doesn't have a sharp edge as with most keyblades though some key chains may have an edge that you're looking for. The damage it inflicts is not based on cuts, but more like a mace. You use it like a sword but the damage comes in the form of a blunt force trauma." _explained Sora as he made the keyblade disappear.

Naruto nodded. Being a shinobi, he understood that there were many weapons in the world and not all of them were based on causing cuts or wounds. In most cases, blunt weapons were more dangerous since the damage they inflicted were huge especially when a vital area was hit.

"So what do we need to do now? I don't know about you but I need to get out of here since we are in the middle of a battle. I need to help my teammates since we're facing strong opponents." explained Naruto as he looked around, trying to look for an exit or something that would bring him out of his current state.

"**The death-like state can only be lifted if the needles are removed. However, your merger with Sora should push the needle out once you combine your abilities. I would say that there would be a sudden burst of power once the merger is complete. Besides, you have nothing to worry if you're in your mind. Time moves slowly here. A minute inside your mindscape is a second outside."** Kyuubi informed them sleepily. His head was currently on his paws and his eyes were closed.

Naruto nodded in understanding before looking at Sora who was looking at him expectantly.

"What do I need to do for us to merge? Are you sure you want to do that?" asked Naruto, not wanting to force his past self to a decision he didn't want to do.

Sora shook his head and smiled at the thoughtfulness of his future self. It was heartening to see that his heart was in the right place with no trace of darkness despite the things that he went through in the village.

"_Nothing. You just need to accept me as I merge my soul with yours. All of my abilities and my memories are yours to use; though I suggest that you take some time to master my abilities since my memories wouldn't give you the necessary experience to wield my powers with ease. In fact, you will only know how they are used but you need to build up the experience through practice if you really want to master them."_ explained Sora as he stepped closer to his future self, preparing for the merger.

Naruto nodded and gave Sora a smile.

"It was nice meeting you, Sora." said Naruto as he held out his hand to the teenager.

Sora grinned and grasped the offered hand making the both of them glow. There was a bright light and Naruto could feel power and memories entering him from their physical connection.

"_Nice to meet you too, Naruto. Use my powers well."_ Was all the Naruto heard before he blacked out.

-x-x-x-x-x-

Naruto felt like he was floating. He was surrounded by a white light while Sora's memories flowed into his mind. He experienced everything Sora did in his life, from the start of his journey in Destiny Island to his natural death. His past counterpart was a warrior, a warrior of the Light, a defender of the weak, and the shield against evil. He wielded his various keyblade forms with mastery as he smote the Heartless and Nobodies that he encountered during his adventures.

Everything that Sora knew, Naruto knew.

Everything that Sora could do, Naruto could now accomplish.

He continued to float as he assimilated the memories while his body changed to accommodate the new powers granted to him by the merger. He didn't know that his physical self was also being subjected to the change as well.

-x-x-x-x-x-

Haku just placed the lone Uchiha in a death-like state. No matter how much Zabuza trained him to be a killer; he could never take a life. At least this way, he knew that the two Konoha genins would survive to see the next day. He was about to cancel his mirrors and help his master when he saw the blonde, whiskered genin glowing before floating a few feet off the ground, righting himself as if he was standing in mid-air, the needles stuck in various places in the boy's body falling to the ground as if they were forced out from within.

Haku was astonished as he saw the first person who understood him change before his very eyes.

As the white light engulfed the genin, various changes were made that left the masked shinobi gaping in awe. Naruto's spiky hair grew a bit, making it even spikier. The ridiculous kill-me-orange jumpsuit morphed into a black and silver outfit with lots of zippers. His sandals also morphed into black shoes with a steel-toed tip. Haku swore that the blonde grew a bit in height and the muscles bulked a bit giving him a more athletic look. Last, but not the least, a crown necklace appeared around the blonde's neck before being slowly lowered to the ground as the white light disappeared.

Haku saw Naruto opened his cerulean blue eyes.

-x-x-x-x-x-

Naruto opened his eyes after assimilating Sora's memories and powers. He felt different, he felt powerful; and most importantly, he felt whole for the first time in his life. The first thing he saw was the masked shinobi standing over Sasuke's unconscious, senbon-riddled body.

"Sasuke!" exclaimed Naruto, running to his friend but stopped and summoned _Oathkeeper_ to block a senbon coming his way. "What the…"

"I don't know how you survived and I don't care. I will place you back in the same state before I assist my master." declared Haku as he walked back and melted right into the mirror, putting all of his reflection in all the mirrors in the dome. Without any warning, Haku started jumping from one mirror to the other while throwing senbon needles at the now-revived blonde.

"I don't think so." declared Naruto before triggering his new ability, _Drive_, slipping into the _Master Form_ with ease, changing the silver in his outfit to yellow. _Oblivion_ materialized and floated just a few inches away from his free hand, spinning lazily. Seeing the dozens of senbons approaching him, the newly awakened Keyblade Master pushed a mental command to the floating Oblivion to start spinning like a shuriken to block the senbons while started using Guard with the rest using _Oathkeeper_.

Haku was flabbergasted when he saw Naruto change the color of his clothes and another one of those weird weapons appeared floating by his free hand. What shocked him, however, was when the blonde started to perform an intricate dance of defense as he blocked all of the senbons with ease. Zabuza's apprentice was confused as to how the blonde suddenly acquired such skill that he didn't display before. Was it a Kekkei Genkai? Was it a hidden ace? What was it?

Considering that he was almost out of senbons, he stopped his barrage and waited inside one of his mirror for a chance to attack. He needed to end this soon since his chakra reserves were running dangerously low, his ultimate technique eating at his energy faster than he could restore it.

Naruto saw the masked shinobi stop his senbon barraged. He needed to destroy the mirrors if he wanted to save Sasuke. Running through Sora's memories in his mind, he finally found something that could work in getting them out of the dome of ice mirrors. It was a long shot but he needed that form's speed and power in order to destroy the mirrors and make sure that the attack was fast enough to avoid a counter.

Taking a deep breath, he reverted back to his normal form and immediately switched to his_ Drive's_ ultimate form, the _Final Form_. All the black in his clothes disappeared to change into white. Two keyblades, _Ultima_ and _Fenrir_, known for their power and range materialized on his back in an X-shaped pattern as he floated a few feet off the bridge. Not wasting any time, he stretched out his hands causing the two keyblades to fly out of his back and started floating a few feet from his palms. Naruto grinned as he started to move his hands around, as if conducting an orchestra, his keyblades spinning and slashing at the mirrors, breaking them with ease.

Haku was shocked when Naruto switched again the colors of his outfits and brought out two different, yet similar, weapons. The weird thing was the blonde floating off the bridge as if he was flying. He didn't have time to worry about the new power the blonde was using since he was running out of mirrors to escape to. It was a few minutes later that he was hiding in the last mirror with Naruto in front of him.

"Now you have nowhere to go so I guess this is good bye for now, hunter-san." said Naruto with a grin before pointing both of his hands towards his enemy causing _Ultima_ and _Fenrir_ to appear floating beside him, one to his left and the other to his right, both tips of the weapons aimed at the lone mirror. With a surge of power, two white beams of energy blasted out of the keyblades and hit the mirror with a resounding boom, causing the ice chakra construct to explode and ejecting its occupant, stunned from the power of the attack.

The blonde saw his chance so he glided towards the hunter-nin and grabbed _Fenrir_ out of the air as it floated beside him before smacking the dazed shinobi right on the mask, shattering it to pieces and propelling his enemy to the floor with a thud. He was shocked when he saw the face of the masked shinobi for the first time.

"Haku!" exclaimed Naruto in shock at seeing a friend behind the mask. He couldn't believe that the boy he met in the clearing was the enemy.

Haku groaned as he pushed himself up before setting his eyes on Naruto who was looking at him in disbelief.

"Hello, Naruto." said Haku before pushing himself off the floor, tired and bruised from the blonde's rather powerful attack.

"Haku. I can't believe this. Why are you here?" asked Naruto though he already knew what his friend really was.

"I am Zabuza's apprentice and I will always follow my master's orders." whispered Haku though it was evident that Naruto heard it. "And his order was to make sure that you don't get in his way. Please stand down, Naruto. I don't want to have to fight you but I will if I have to."

Naruto shakes his head and looked at Haku in the eye. He could see the hesitation there, the hesitation to fight a friend.

"You don't have to follow him, Haku. You can stop all this. Just stand down. I don't want to hurt you." urged Naruto as _Ultima_ floated around him, waiting on its master's mental command to be used.

Haku shook his head in negative before pulling out a senbon needle from his pouch.

"I'm sorry, Naruto. I'm Zabuza's tool." said Haku before dashing forward to start his attack.

Naruto easily saw through Haku's speed thanks to his recent upgrade and used _Fenrir_ to block the incoming attack. While they were in a stalemate, Haku started doing one-handed seals before shouting out his technique.

"**Certain-Kill Ice Spears**." whispered Haku as he released his chakra. Six spears of ice materialized out of nowhere surrounding Naruto who immediately sent a mental command to _Ultima_. The ultimate keyblade started spinning around, destroying the ice spears with ease before flying over to its master.

Naruto grabbed _Ultima_ and started attacking Haku in earnest, forcing the ice-wielding shinobi to retreat while blocking the blonde's frenzied attacks with his lone senbon. With a grunt, Naruto added more power forcing Haku back though the unmasked boy started doing another set of seals for his next attack as he blocked every swing. Landing on a puddle of water, Haku stamped on it, making the water rise to the air before shouting his next technique.

"**Thousand Flying Water Needles of Death."**

Naruto saw that he was surrounded so he cast a spell from Sora's memories using _Ultima_ considering that the keyblade had the ability to increase the potency of spells cast through it.

"**Reflect!"** shouted Naruto causing a glass-like energy construct to materialize and protect him from every angle. The water needles hit the shield and started bouncing off it. Haku saw some of the needles flying his way so he jumped to the side to avoid being impaled by his own technique.

Naruto, however, saw his chance so he canceled the spell and glided over to Haku in a burst of speed. He caught up to his friend in a second before placing _Ultima's_ pointed tip on Haku's neck.

"Surrender, Haku. It's over. I don't want to hurt you."

Haku looked at Naruto with sadness in his eyes.

"I'm sorry but I can't. If you want me to stop fighting you then you just have to kill me." whispered Haku.

Naruto could clearly see the determination of the boy in front of him, the determination to stand by his master's side and to die if need be. He growled in frustration.

"We don't have to fight, Haku. You're my friend. Zabuza may be your master but you're your own person." he declared, sincerity dripping in his voice, trying to convince his friend.

Haku shook his head and smiled at the boy that was vainly trying to save his life.

"Zabuza saved me from a life of death. He taught me everything he knew so I could protect myself. My life belongs to him." Haku said with a sad smile. "Please kill me, Naruto. If you don't then I will do everything in my power to kill the bridge builder. If that happens then Wave wouldn't be able to escape Gato's clutches"

Naruto was struggling within as he tried to change his friend. He didn't want to kill; it wasn't part of his creed to do so. Haku was a kind-hearted person trained to be a cold-blooded killer. But no matter how hard he was trained, the boy didn't have the guts to kill. His heart wouldn't allow him. He tried to come up with a way to save his friend while protecting Tazuna but if Haku wouldn't stand down then he didn't have a choice. If he were to chose, then he would rather choose for Tazuna to live. A lot of people's lives were at stake.

Haku smiled when he saw the determination seep into Naruto's eyes after struggling with his emotions. He accepted his fate. He failed his master and that only meant death for him. He steeled himself for the coming blow but he saw something at the corner of his eyes which froze his heart. His master needed his help.

Naruto was about push Ultima's tip on Haku's neck to end the boy's life but Haku's words stopped him.

"I'm sorry, Naruto. I can't die yet. It seems that I can still be of service to my master for one last time. Farewell, my friend." said Haku as he disappeared in a swirl of ice causing Naruto to look at the place where the boy was standing in shock. He looked around, trying to pierce the heavy mist surrounding him to see where his friend went. Cursing the mist, he raised Ultima over his head and cast the most powerful wind spell he knew. **"Wind!"**

A powerful wind burst forth from his body, blowing the mist away. What Naruto saw next made his blood run cold. Haku was standing between his sensei and Zabuza, a lightning encased hand piercing his chest and heart.

"HAKU!" shouted Naruto as he flew to his friend.

Kakashi turned to the sound of his student's voice and almost fainted when he saw a different Naruto flying towards him with two weird weapons floating around him in agitation.

"Naruto?" asked a stunned Kakashi, his shock causing him to pull out his hand from Haku's chest with a loud squelch, blood splashing on the bridge.

"Kakashi-sensei!" exclaimed Naruto before turning to the downed form of Haku, life slowly receding from his friend's eyes. "Haku, no!" he shouted before landing on the floor and trying to stop the flow of blood from the large hole in the boy's chest with his hands.

Zabuza was stunned when Haku materialized in front of him to take the blow that was meant to be his. He couldn't believe that his apprentice saved his life. He was further stunned when he saw one of Kakashi's brats flying, FLYING, towards him before kneeling down and trying to save his apprentice.

"There's nothing you can do, kid. Haku took the blow that was meant for me." said Zabuza in a cold voice while struggling against the dogs that Kakashi summoned to keep him in place. He wanted to free himself from the dog's grip so he could check on his apprentice. He didn't show it but he was saddened by Haku's death, a boy that he secretly treated like a son he never had.

Kakashi was looking sadly at his student as the blonde tried vainly to save what appeared to be his friend.

"Stop it, Naruto. There's nothing you can do. My Raikiri was a technique designed to pierce and it went straight to his heart. He is dying." Kakashi informed his student. He was shocked, however, when said student simply stood up and growled at him.

"Never! I'll save Haku no matter what." growled Naruto as he made _Fenrir_ disappear and brought out _Star Seeker_ since he needed it for what he was about to do next. He grabbed both keyblades and pointed both at the hole in Haku's chest while gathering as much chakra as he could. **"HEAL!"**

The rush of power coming from the blonde was immense; both Kakashi and Zabuza was shocked at the output of chakra from the young genin as twin beams of green light flew out from the tip of both keyblades and hit Haku's prone form and covering the boy with healing energy. Naruto knew that it was working but he was slowly tiring from the drain of the spell. Despite the power of Star Seeker to boost his magic and increase the restoration of his magical reserves, it couldn't cope with the continuous use of the spell. Not wanting to give up, Naruto called for help deep into his mind, to ask for help from someone that could provide him with the necessary power to finish healing his friend.

"_Kyuubi! Please give me some of your chakra."_ Naruto mentally shouted to his tenant.

Thankfully, the bijuu heard his mental plea from deep within his mindscape.

"_**It's useless, brat. Nothing you can do short of a miracle can save your friend now."**_ said Kyuubi as plain fact. The bijuu knew that his energy could easily replace those that his container used and provide a boost for his spells but he wanted to test his determination first.

"_I don't care. I'll keep trying until every last drop of my energy runs out. Please give me some of your energy."_ pleaded Naruto to the bijuu.

"_**And what if I don't?"**_ asked the fox rhetorically.

This rather-cold question from his tenant made Naruto's eyes glint with renewed determination.

"_Then I will use every last drop of chakra I have in my body. I don't care if it kills me."_ declared Naruto as he pushed more of his waning energy into the keyblades to boost the healing spell.

Kyuubi was silent for a few seconds as he digested the blonde's declaration. Considering that he was within the boy's body, he could easily check the energy reserves and the health of his host. It seemed that the boy was determined to go to the brink of death just to save his friend. From the looks of it, Naruto was determined to use every last drop of his chakra even if he dropped dead from the strain. Also, his host might not know it but Kyuubi would die if his container did. It seemed that the boy had a cunning side to him that he didn't realize existed which made the bijuu smirk inside his cage before sending out a burst of his potent chakra into his container to start replenishing Naruto's almost empty reserves, as well as powering the spell directly from his own.

Naruto could feel Kyuubi accepting his request through a surge of chakra from his gut, replenishing his almost empty reserves while also adding more energy to the spell. The waning beams of the Cure spell he was directing at Haku flared before doubling in size making the wounded boy flinch from the sudden onslaught of healing energy. Naruto didn't know it but he was producing an aura of power that Kakashi easily recognized.

"_Holy shit! He's using Kyuubi chakra for whatever it is he's doing. What happened to him and what are those things he is holding?"_ Kakashi mentally ranted as he watched and felt the power of his genin coming out of his body waves as he directed it towards healing the injured teen on the floor.

"_Whatever this kid is doing, it's working. I never felt such power before. It is even more powerful than Yagura's when he brought his bijuu out."_ thought Zabuza as he saw the hole on Haku's chest slowly closing as the energy seemed to double in that area.

Naruto grunted as he continued to hold the spell while watching the hole on Haku's chest closing. He could see the muscles knitting together, closing the hole. Finally the skin was slowly being replaced by new ones. He immediately ended the spell when the healing was finished. He sent a mental thanks to his tenant before looking at his astonished sensei and grinned.

"See? I told you I'll heal him." gasped Naruto before pulling in much needed oxygen to catch his breath. He was tired but he could feel his reserves almost going to full. It seemed that he was tired from directing Kyuubi's energy towards the keyblades since his body's wasn't used to it yet.

"I don't know what you did, Naruto, but you did a good job." said Kakashi while giving the boy his patented eye-smile though he was inwardly worried that Konoha's number one unpredictable genin just healed one of their enemies.

Naruto was about to say something when he heard clapping from somewhere at the unfinished end of the bridge.

"What a show! It looks like your reputation as the Demon of the Mist was a sham, Zabuza. Here you are helpless in front of Tazuna's hired bodyguards." said the voice until someone walked out of the mist revealing the owner of the voice to be Gato who was followed closely by his armada of mercenaries and thugs.

"Gato!" growled Zabuza at the midget business tycoon. "What are you doing here?"

Gato released a nasty grin while eyeing Zabuza's wounds.

"Well, if you want something done right then you just have to do it yourself. From the looks of it, I was right in that decision too." Gato said nastily as he surveyed the battleground with his gaze stopping at Haku's prone form. "This move of mine would kill two birds with one stone and the Konoha shinobis are just the icing on the cake."

"What do you mean? asked Kakashi, confused by the whole thing since Gato hired Zabuza.

"I had no intentions of paying the 'Baby of the Mist' and his apprentice. This is the reasons why I brought my hired thugs with me. Missing-nins are so expensive so I had no intentions of paying the two with my precious money. I would, however, like to thank you for weakening him for my group. I'll make sure to give you a proper burial when my men are done with all of you." declared Gato while giving the sleeping Haku a nasty grin. "Starting with your baby apprentice over there."

Kakashi looked at Gato for a few moments before looking straight at Zabuza who was doing the same to him.

"I guess we're no longer enemies if you're employer just renege on your deal." Kakashi informed the missing-nin casually. He did a Ram seal and dispelled the summoned nin-dogs, effectively freeing Zabuza from his confinement.

"Yes. I think it's time that I teach the midget that there are things you're not supposed to do when dealing with shinobis, especially missing-nins." declared Zabuza as he tested his wounded arms, finding them unresponsive to his commands. "Could you lend me a kunai? It would seem that I can't use my sword with two arms being unable to move."

Kakashi was about to comply when Naruto growled.

"No need." Naruto said angrily before pointing _Star Seeker_ at Zabuza. **"Heal!" **

A green bolt of healing energy erupted from the keyblade's tip and enveloping Zabuza in a healing cocoon. A few seconds later, the spell ended with Zabuza testing his fully-healed arms in amazement. The Demon of the Mist gave Naruto a look of respect before turning to Kakashi who was smiling at the genin.

"I don't know where you got this kid, Kakashi, but you got lucky on the draw." said Zabuza before picking up his blade, Kubiki Hocho, from the floor.

"I know. Naruto is Konoha's most unpredictable shinobi and never failed to impress." replied Kakashi with a smile before pulling out a kunai and facing Gato and his merry men. "Shall we?"

"Let's." Zabuza agreed before looking at Naruto who was looking murderously at the midget. "I guess you're coming too huh, brat?"

Naruto didn't say anything but growled in response. He rose up from the ground and let go of _Star Seeker_ and _Ultima_ who obediently floated around him in anticipation of the coming battle.

"If you two old man don't hurry up, I'll finish all of them for you." said Naruto before flying towards the stunned group of thugs with an equally stunned Gato. When he reached them, he swung his hands around causing the keyblades to spin around and attacking anyone who came into range.

Zabuza and Kakashi exchanged a quick glance before dashing towards the rampaging blonde, hoping to get a little bit of the action before all the thugs were gone.


	2. Chapter 2

**Naruto: The New Keyblade Master**

**Summary**: _Instead of Sasuke, Naruto was hit by Haku's needles, putting him in a death-like state. He entered his mindscape for the first-time and met Kyuubi face-to-face. However, someone was there that he didn't expect - a legendary warrior from ages past. Sora, the Keyblade Master._

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Naruto or Kingdom Hearts.

**Chapter 02: Assimilation**

Naruto woke up to the bright glare of the sun coming from the window. Opening his eyes, he found himself in the bedroom he shared with his teammates in Tazuna's house. Looking around, he noticed that Sakura and Sasuke's futon were empty and judging from the sun in the sky, it was almost noon. He got a confirmation of that when his stomach growled of hunger. Deciding that it was time to wake up, he rose and stretched to get rid of the kinks in his back.

The new Keyblade Master wondered how he got to the room when he suddenly remembered what happened before blacking out. He came on to Gato and his thugs like a force of nature, wielding both _Ultima_ and _Star_ _Seeker_ with unmatched skill, cutting down the hired thugs like a hot knife through butter. His old persona, before the merger with Sora's, would have made him squeamish at the wanton destruction he rained down on his enemies but the memories of his past self made him immune to the ravages of battle. He didn't like what he did but it was better to cut down the guilty than the innocent.

Naruto sighed as he finally realized what Haku meant about the life of a shinobi. Unlike his previous ideology of not taking a life, a shinobi doesn't have such leisure. There would be times that a mission would require him to take a life and he was quite thankful of Sora's memories when he defeated Organization XIII to desensitize him from the experience. Not to mention that the shinobi code of 'kill or be killed' was a strict rule that everyone followed. No one was given a break. If you're not willing to take the life of your enemy then you're the one who would end up losing yours in the battlefield. Such was the life he entered and finally accepted.

He went to the bathroom to freshen up but froze when he saw his reflection in the mirror. Considering that he was in the middle of a battle, he didn't have time to really observe the result of his assimilation with Sora's soul. The reflection in the mirror clearly told him that there were indeed changes, more so physically than mental.

Naruto recognized the outfit he was wearing. It was an exact duplicate of Sora's made for him by the fairies – Fauna, Flora, and Merryweather. He also noticed that there were some changes to his body from the result of the assimilation. He was taller now, roughly around 5'4 or so, putting him in the same height as Sasuke which was quite tall for a 15 year old. Before, he was the shortest in the group but it now belonged to his pink-haired teammate. He also noticed that his hair grew out, making spikier and wilder than ever – similar to Sora's hair when he met his counterpart inside his mindscape. Speaking of which, he needed to thank his tenant for the help in Haku's healing.

"_Kyuubi?"_ Naruto asked mentally to the fox.

"_**Yes?"**_ came the sleepy response. Naruto raised an eyebrow when Kyuubi's voice had a tired quality to it. It seemed that the fox was sleeping before he woke the bijuu up.

"_Thanks for helping me with a chakra boost back at the bridge."_ said Naruto gratefully.

Silence reined for a few seconds before the fox replied.

"_**You're welcome, kit."**_ said Kyuubi in a stoic voice, confusing Naruto as to what the fox was thinking in regards to his thanks. _**"Just don't ask for my help too often."**_

"_I won't though I won't say no to an emergency pick-me-up from time to time if the situation demands it."_ Naruto argued to the fox. He knew that he was stronger now thanks to Sora's abilities added to his own but having a back-up chakra powerhouse in his gut was a welcome scenario.

"_**Agreed."**_ said his tenant. _**"I suggest that you don't disturb me for a week or two since I needed to rest from using all that energy with the spell you used to heal your…friend. In the meantime, I suggest that you take some time to meditate on the memories you acquired from your past self in order to learn everything about the abilities he bestowed on you. You subconsciously used them at the bridge but using the power in its maximum form without second thought was a waste of good energy. I suggest that you assimilate them carefully so you would be able to use it wisely in the future. Besides, other than being a Keyblade Master, you're a shinobi in this life so you need to keep your abilities hidden if you don't want others to find out your weaknesses." **_

"_Good idea. Using the Master Form so early in the game wasn't a good thing to do but that was all I could think of at that time. I'll ask Kakashi-sensei some time-off from bridge duty since Gato is no longer around to meditate and practice Sora's abilities."_ said Naruto in total agreement with the bijuu. He needed to assimilate Sora's memories in order to learn all of the abilities that came with the use of the Keyblade, not to mention the number of forms he had of said weapon which Sora collected during his many adventures.

"_**Good. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going back to my cat nap." **_said Kyuubi with a yawn.

"_Ummm…isn't it supposed to be 'fox nap' since you're a fox and all." _deadpanned Naruto, catching the fox off-guard.

Kyuubi didn't grace Naruto with a response but he could feel the surge of irritation coming from his tenant. Chuckling at the idea of getting a one up on the ancient being, he proceeded to take off his new clothes and went to take a shower before going down to the kitchen for a much-needed food fest.

-x-x-x-x-x-

When Naruto was about to enter the kitchen but stopped when he noticed that almost everyone was already there.

Sasuke was busy eating lunch in his usual sour demeanor. Naruto couldn't help but liken his attitude to Riku, Sora's best friend, before and after he became a wielder of the Dark. The blonde couldn't help but see the resemblance there, well maybe except for the jet-black hair and style which was very different from the white-haired Keyblade Master. Sakura was there as well, animatedly talking to Tsunami. Again, Naruto could help but compare her to Kairi, another best friend of Sora's, except for the hair though the color of their clothes was definitely the same. He wondered if his teammates were also reincarnation of the duo, and if they were then it was a big coincidence for it to happen.

Another thing Naruto noticed that there was a big change in how he saw his teammates. He could deny the fact that he was more mature in his thinking and couldn't help but see some difference that evaded him before.

There was a dark aura around Sasuke that he didn't notice before. There was a lot of anger there, a tinge of jealousy, and a lust for battle. Sakura, on the other hand, was a total opposite; there was a carefree aura around her that marked her more as a civilian than a shinobi. Naruto couldn't help but cringe at the potential danger his teammates may cause to the team if they didn't take their careers seriously.

Naruto eyes then fell on his one-eyed Jounin sensei, Kakashi, who was having a whispered discussion with Zabuza. The aura that the man displayed was lackluster to say the least, displaying a sense of laziness and boredom but the blonde Keyblade Master could easily feel the underlying readiness that marked him as an experienced shinobi. He also felt the same aura from Zabuza though there was more bloodlust there than necessary, a thirst for battle that could only be quenched by striking down his enemies.

Naruto made his way into the kitchen and decided to make his presence known.

"Hiyah everyone." greeted Naruto, surprising everyone to his presence.

There was a squawk of surprise from both Tsunami and Sakura, Sasuke just grunted while giving him an analyzing look, and Zabuza gave him a curious look. It was Kakashi who spoke first.

"Glad you're up Naruto. How are you feeling?" asked Kakashi while giving him an eye-smile, inwardly relieved that his student didn't suffer from any side-effects from using those abilities he was displaying.

"Feeling good, Kakashi-sensei." Naruto replied with a grin before looking at Zabuza curiously since the Demon of the Mist was doing the same to him. "Why is no-eyebrow here?"

Zabuza's eye twitched at the direct jibe to his lack of eyebrows.

"Shut up, gaki." growled Zabuza causing Sakura and Tsunami to squeak. "Glad you're alright. I have to carry you back here when you fainted after healing the Uchiha."

This surprised Naruto a bit before a memory rose up from his mind. He remembered using a minor healing spell on Sasuke to pull him out of his death-like state thanks to Haku's needles before passing out from exhaustion.

"Thanks for bringing me back safe and sound, Zabuza-oji-san." said Naruto with a foxy grin which made Zabuza's eye twitch some more at being called an old man.

"I'm not that old, brat." Zabuza growled in irritation. Naruto simply waved it off before sitting himself beside Sakura who was looking at him curiously.

"Meh. Could have fooled me. Anyway, how long was I out?" asked Naruto the group on the table.

"You slept most of the day yesterday until today." Sakura informed him before checking out the changes on her teammate. "What happened to you?"

Naruto hesitated in telling his teammate about what happened to him back at the bridge. He knew that Sakura was one of the biggest gossips in Konoha and she hadn't treated him that good while they were in the Academy and the short time they became teammates. In fact, Naruto was confused as to why he had a crush on her in the first place considering that she was quite mean to him. He decided to avoid telling the truth, except for maybe those that he trusts. Right now, denial was the best answer he could give.

"I don't know. Something just woke up inside me and I got these changes." said Naruto with a shrug though he saw from the corner of his eyes that Kakashi and Zabuza didn't believe him one bit. This was expected considering that the two of them were there when he healed Haku and massacred Gato and his thugs back at the bridge.

"You mean it's a Kekkei Genkai (bloodline limit)?" asked Sakura curiously, clear interest in her tone.

Naruto simply shrugged again without giving her an answer before giving Tsunami a thankful smile after putting a plate full of food on the table in front of him.

"I'm not sure and I don't know. I need to talk with Kakashi-sensei later or maybe with Hokage-jiji when we get back to Konoha if they know about the changes in my body. I'm sure that they knew my parents so maybe they could tell me if they underwent the same things I did." answered the blonde before diving into his meal. He did, however, notice Kakashi tense upon the mention of his parents, confirming the fact that his one-eyed sensei knew something. He swallowed the food he was chewing before turning to the Konoha Jounin. "Neh, Kakashi-sensei, what happens now that Gato is gone?"

"Well, our mission was to protect Tazuna as he finishes the bridge so we might be staying here for two more weeks before heading back to Konoha." Kakashi answered lazily. Thankfully, the bridge builder gave him a time table as to when the bridge would be finished.

"Great! Ummmm," Naruto hesitated a bit, trying to find the right words to convey his request. "Kakashi-sensei, is it possible to ask for a time off, like a day or two, since I want to find out what happened to me back at the bridge."

Kakashi grew thoughtful before nodding.

"Sure. I can give you today and tomorrow as time-off. Sasuke and Sakura can handle guard duty before you and me taking over." Kakashi informed him genin student who immediately smiled at getting what he asked for.

"Thanks, Kakashi-sensei." said Naruto gratefully. "I think I'll use the spot where you taught us Tree Walking if that's alright with you.

"Good idea. Is it okay if I drop by later to check up on you? I have some questions regarding the abilities you displayed back at the bridge." asked Kakashi. Naruto nodded his approval before going back to his food, totally unaware of the different looks leveled at him by his teammates.

-x-x-x-x-x-

After a quick lunch and farewell, Naruto left Tazuna's house heading for Team 7's pseudo training ground. When he got there, the first thing he did was to check on his shinobi skills if it was affected by his merger with Sora's soul.

"Alright, let's check out if my shinobi skills still works." declared Naruto as he headed straight for the tree he used to practice chakra control a few days ago. He channeled a bit of chakra to his feet and placed one foot on the trunk. Testing it a bit to see if he had a solid grip before raising his other foot and started walking upwards. He noticed that his control was a bit shot but he managed to reach the top easily. He vowed to keep practicing Tree Walking if he had time since his reserves seemed to have increased after the merger.

Satisfied that his chakra control was good enough for now, he jumped from the top of the tree using the lower branches as a springboard as he made his way down.

He immediately went into a meditative pose when he reached the ground and sorted through Sora's memories concerning his abilities. Naruto disregarded the memories of his past self's adventure but focused more on the keyblades and abilities he now had in his repertoire.

Naruto realized that the different keyblades he possessed could be categorized according to their range and abilities. For example, _Ultima_ was the most powerful in terms of range considering its size; well, it was powerful considering that it was considered as the ultimate form of the weapon, hence its name.

Some keyblades, however, grant increased attacking power while others specializes in spells. Some even had the ability to speed up the restoration of his energy reserves which was dead useful when in the middle of a battle where chakra was a necessity.

Speaking of energy, it seemed that the spells now used chakra instead of Mana or Magic Power. This confused him a bit but he didn't bother delving into it further as long as he could use the abilities with the innate energy type he possessed.

Naruto was also amazed at the repertoire of spells that Sora could do. Elemental spells that he could cast using a keyblade were similar to elemental jutsus used by many shinobis. From the looks of it, he could throw fireballs and ice spells with equal intensity without having to worry about affinities. The power of the spell would depend on how much energy he channeled into the weapon. Support spells like the Cure Spell he used on Haku and Sasuke, as well as shield spells like Reflect was a welcome addition to his repertoire since it could be of great help in the battlefield.

He vowed to practice the different spells so he could use them better in the future.

The next set of memories Naruto sorted was on _Drive Forms_. It seemed that his outfit gave him the ability to shift into different forms that grant him certain boosts in stats.

For example, the _Valor Form_ allowed him to wield two different keyblades, same with _Master_ and _Final Form_ though the latter two utilized telekinesis to control the floating blade that he subconsciously used during the battle. The only form that used one keyblade was the _Wisdom Form_ which automatically locked him at using only _Star Seeker_ due to its magic enhancement properties, as well as the immense chakra regeneration capabilities that this form granted.

Naruto also realized that _Drive Forms_ used a lot of chakra and would slowly eat away at his reserves if left activated. Different forms requires different amounts of chakra so he needed to experiment how much drain it had on his reserves while activated to avoid getting exhausted in the middle of a battle or waste chakra during prolonged battles. He vowed to only use Drive Forms as a last resort if there weren't any other choice.

He did, however, grinned when he remembered the sensation of flight when using _Final Form_ and vowed to do it again soon for some leisure flying. It was also good training since emptying his reserves would eventually increase its size, like muscles getting stronger after being overused.

The only abilities that he didn't get form Sora was Summon. It seemed that the dimension door in his world was locked that stopped him from summoning powerful allies to help him. He noticed that this was similar to the Summon Animals used by shinobis. He vowed to do a little bit of research when he gets back to Konoha regarding Summoning Contracts since it was dead useful to have allies you could summon when in a pinch.

Naruto opened his eyes after hours of storing through the memories of his counterpart. Deciding to get a hands-on experience of his capabilities, he summoned a dozen shadow clones into the clearing.

"Alright guys," Naruto addressed the waiting clones. "We're going to test our abilities with a little Battle Royale. First I want to see if you can summon a Keyblade."

Naruto held out his hand and called out _Ultima_ which appeared immediately in his grip startling the clones considering that it was the most powerful keyblade in the blonde's arsenal. The clones looked at each other and nodded before holding out their hands, deciding on their own keyblades to use in the spar. One-by-one, the different keyblades materialized in the clone's hands causing said clones to give the sweating original an evil grin.

With a shout, all the clones rushed forward with their keyblades at the ready signifying the start of the spar.

-x-x-x-x-x-

Naruto slumped on the ground as he destroyed the last of his keyblade wielding clones. Tired and bruised, he decided to rest a bit and thought about the spar.

For starters, he discovered that Kage Bushin had a unique ability compared to other clone techniques. If a Kage Bunshin dispels, all its experience and memories was transferred back to the creator. This was what happened while he sparred with his clones. He kept getting distracted by the clone's memories causing him to lose focus a few times which allowed a few of the clones to land a few good hits. Thankfully, his outfit was still in one piece and granted him boost in defense so he was only bruised and sore.

He grinned, however, at the potential use he could get from the technique. If his theory was right then he could utilize his clones to further his training as he vowed to do when he returned to Konoha. He was a bit saddened that his old persona was a bit lackluster despite the potential he held. If he was serious in his studies instead of goofing around, he would be in top form for the mission. Alas, he couldn't really put all the blame on his shoulder since some of the teachers in the Academy were clearly sabotaging his education and it seemed that only Iruka was the exception to that. He decided to raid the library and catch up on missed lessons when he gets back.

After the spar, and thanks to the point-of-view offered by his clones, he was able to determine his weaknesses that he needed to eliminate if he wanted to succeed in his chosen career.

For starters, he lacked a solid taijutsu style. His brawler-like taijutsu wouldn't cut it and it left too many holes in his body that an enemy could exploit. Another weakness was the lack of kenjutsu skills, especially now that he wielded the keyblade. Sure, he had Sora's memories on the different styles and combos his past self used with the weapon but it seemed that knowing about it and doing it were two different things. He could also tell that Sora's kenjutsu style wouldn't fit well with him since he preferred to wield two weapons instead of one so he needed a dual-sword style if he really wanted to improve.

Speaking of dual swords, he discovered through one of his clones that he could, in fact, wield two keyblades without having to go into _Valor_, _Master_, or _Final Form_. However, it seemed that the secondary keyblade's abilities were locked and only the primary keyblade granted him an additional boost. He vowed to learn all the abilities of his keyblades by heart so he could bring out the right one for every situation that came up.

As he recovered from the spar, Naruto mind called up Sora's childhood. He smiled that his past self had good memories unlike his own. The villagers hated him and only a few people cared for him. However, the blame was also on his shoulder since he practically made himself a pariah through pranks. Sure, they hated him for holding the Kyuubi but he didn't do anything to sway them otherwise.

If he wanted to improve his social standing in Konoha, if it was possible, then he needed to change his lifestyle.

This project, however, required money which he sorely lacked. The money he saved from his allowances before he became a shinobi was small considering that he used most of it on food which stopped him from purchasing proper clothes which made him buy the orange jumpsuit since it was the only thing affordable on sale at that time. Also, the money he earned doing D-Rank missions weren't enough to improve his deteriorating lifestyle.

Of course, there were options available to acquire money.

One was to continue doing missions and save enough money for his project. This would take years. If he wanted a much larger paycheck then he either needed better missions or get promoted to Chuunin to get access to C-Rank or even B-Rank mission paychecks, both of which were way bigger than a genin's.

Another was to find work in Konoha. This option was immediately scrapped due to two reasons.

One, he didn't have enough time considering he was a shinobi of the Leaf and required to do missions and his free time would be spent with personal training to get stronger so he could move up the ranks.

Two, he wouldn't be able to find a stable job in the village if he had time since the villagers wouldn't even trust him in their stores. Again, this was because of Kyuubi and his actions as a prankster.

Naruto realized that there was a source of money right there in Wave. Considering that Gato was no more, thanks to Zabuza's Kubikiri Hocho, the money he had that came from his many businesses were just sitting there ready for the taking. Grinning like a loon, the blonde immediately created hundreds of clones to check out the island to search for Gato's hideout for his planned night-time raid.

-x-x-x-x-x-

It was around midnight that Naruto got the memory of one of his shadow clones informing him of the location of Gato's hideout deep in a forest on the eastern side of Wave Country. After getting the memory, he immediately dashed out of his training ground in route to said location. He wasn't worried that his sensei would come looking for him since the one-eyed Jounin knew that he could take care of himself with ease.

It was two hours later that he arrived outside Gato's mansion even with his chakra-enhanced speed. Sure, he could have used the _Glide_ ability that came with his _Final Form_ but he didn't want to abuse it.

Besides, it was good training for both his body and chakra to go on a full-sprint for hours.

He was gasping for breath when he appeared in front of a large mansion that was Gato's hideout. It was empty and there wasn't a single light in the building considering that they were all wiped out during the battle at the bridge.

Despite the lack of people, Naruto cautiously entered the building and looked around, trying to find any source of life and avoid them for his current mission.

It was half-an-hour later that he sighed in relief when the mansion was literally empty of life. Grinning, he created a dozen clones and instructed them to try to find where Gato hid his money and dispel to inform him of the location.

While the clones were checking out the different rooms in the upper floors of the mansion, Naruto busied himself checking out the ground floor of the four-story complex.

He hit pay-dirt when he entered a room that looked like an armory. Weapons of all kinds littered the walls and boxes waiting for him to take advantage of.

His main problem was to find a way to transport all these weapons to Konoha without anyone knowing. It was his loot after all and he needed it more than anyone.

He looked around the boxes and hit the jackpot when he spotted several scrolls with storage seals on them for easy transport. He couldn't believe that his luck was that good for Gato to have shinobi equipments among his loot.

Thankfully, he was paying attention to Iruka's lesson concerning Fuuinjutsu so he knew how to use them without blowing himself up.

Naruto created a dozen more clones and instructed them to pack as many of the weapons they could on the storage scrolls available. Grinning, he left the armory and checked out the other rooms on the first floor.

His next stop was the kitchen and Naruto couldn't help but salivate over the food in the pantry just waiting for him to devour. Considering that there were too much for him to eat in one sitting, he decided to share this blessing to the people of Wave who were still having problems despite the death of Gato.

He went back to the armory and acquired two spare storage scrolls before going back to the pantry. He divided the food into two piles before storing them. The biggest pile was for the people of Wave while the smaller one was for his own use.

Once that was done, he tucked the two storage scrolls of food into one of the zip pockets on his jacket before checking out what the rest of the floor had to offer.

He entered a small room that looked like a study. The shelves were filled with scrolls and books in various topics, even shinobi scrolls! Praising his luck again, he started checking out the titles while making two clones to help him check for hidden areas that may hold more items for him to take with him back to Konoha.

The books were literary works, nothing too fancy though he was quite curious of a shelvf containing only orange books. He pulled one out randomly and started to read. It was a few seconds later that he blew into a large blush with a slight nosebleed. He placed the book back on the shelf and shuddered. He was too young to know about those things, damn it.

"Hey boss, you might want to check this out." said one of his clones who was busy checking out a large portrait of Gato behind the study table.

Curious, Naruto approached the clone who slid the portrait to the side revealing a vault with a complicated locking mechanism keeping the items inside from being robbed.

"Whoah! Any idea how we can open this thing?" asked Naruto as he eyed the combination lock on the middle of the vault. The clone just shrugged informing him that it had no idea.

It was a few minutes of trial and error with the combination lock that a stray thought crossed his mind. Sora told him that the keyblade had the ability to open 'any' doors.

"Well, it's worth a shot." said Naruto before jumping back and summoning the _Kingdom Key_ to his hands. He pointed the tip of the keyblade at the stubborn lock, willing it to open.

A beam of white light exited the tip and hit the combination lock. It was a second later that there was a loud click informing him and the clones in the room that the door was open for them.

"This is so cool!" exclaimed Naruto as he made the keyblade disappear and one of his clones opened the vault. Inside was definitely a treasure trove of items and money that would make him rich beyond his wildest dreams. He created a few more clones to start checking out the items and to count the money.

Two hours later, Naruto had a full inventory of the items inside the room and a few of them caught his attention.

For starters, Gato was a glutton when it came to recording where he got his ill-gotten wealth. One of his clones showed him a ledger containing the moneys and land he stole from the residents of Wave Country.

Grinning at the prospect of helping the people of Wave to get back on their feet, he instructed the clone to get a storage scroll from the armory and start putting the deeds and moneys there, along with the ledger, to be given to Tazuna later for distribution.

After storing the documents on the scroll, there were still 120 million ryo in the vault that Naruto assumed was Gato's main wealth excluding the 130 million ryo that the midget tyrant stole from Wave. He immediately told the clone to store it in a scroll as he checked out the rest of the items in the huge vault.

There were boxes containing jewels that he told the clone to store in a scroll as well. He strayed to the end of the vault where a bunch of scrolls was located. His eyes lit up in childish glee when he discovered that the scrolls were of shinobi techniques from different villages in the Elemental Nation. There were even scrolls that contained lessons from chakra theory to elemental manipulation. He didn't know why Gato hoarded them but he was thankful that the businessman did.

However, the cream of the crop were four huge scrolls in their own respective shelf. These were the Summoning Contracts for Wolf, Tiger, Serpents, and Bear. Grinning, he immediately grabbed a storage scroll from a clone who was about to use it on the money earning him a startled 'hey' before immediately sealing them up. He knew that he only get to sign one Summoning Contract since there were rules to multiple summons. He would just have to ask the summon animal when he chose the right one for him.

Whistling in happiness, Naruto helped his clones pack up the rest while thanking Gato for having a box full of storage scrolls just for him. Not only was he rich in terms of money, the information contained in the shinobi scrolls and the Summoning Contracts were worth more than any ryo he acquired from the vault.

-x-x-x-x-x-


	3. Chapter 3

**Naruto: The New Keyblade Master**

**Summary**: _Instead of Sasuke, Naruto was hit by Haku's needles, putting him in a death-like state. He entered his mindscape for the first-time and met Kyuubi face-to-face. However, someone was there that he didn't expect - a legendary warrior from ages past. Sora, the Keyblade Master._

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Naruto, Kingdom Hearts, or any copyrighted items I may have used.

**Chapter 03: Training**

Naruto sighed as he exited Gato's mansion. It took relatively a day and a half to pack everything valuable into the storage scrolls he found in the armory. Despite having found the valuables on the first floor, his clones used the remaining storage scrolls in the armory to literally ransack the mansion of anything remotely useful – which includes the furniture, clothes, even the kitchens sink.

To that end, he left the place empty of anything except for the actual mansion itself. He shuddered to think what his clones would have done if he gave the order to pack 'everything'. They might have brought down the mansion to its every foundation.

Thankfully, he slept while his clones packed everything into their respective scrolls so he wasn't that tired for his journey back to town. After sorting through the items, which were fortunately labeled, he segregated those that would be given to Wave and the rest he kept to himself.

Whistling a jaunty tune, he channeled chakra to his feet and sped off towards the town of Wave and to Tazuna's house.

-x-x-x-x-x-

Considering that he knew where he was going this time, Naruto didn't take long to get to Tazuna's house from Gato's mansion. It was around lunch time and he was pretty hungry after all that running so he entered the house and headed straight for the kitchen where he found Tazuna talking with Kakashi.

"Hiyah old man, Kakashi-sensei. I'm back." exclaimed Naruto before sitting down on the chair in front of the duo.

"Shut up, brat. I'm not that old." Tazuna shouted indignantly. "Where were you anyway? You were gone for two days."

"Yes, Naruto, please tell me where you were. I checked out the clearing yesterday and you weren't there." asked Kakashi with a curious look on his face. He wasn't worried that Naruto disappeared. He knew that his student could take care of himself though he was curious as to where he actually went when they agreed that he would just stay in their temporary training ground.

Naruto gave the two of them a sheepish smile while scratching the back of his head. He wanted to keep things a secret, especially his…escapade to Gato's mansion. He planned to give the scrolls to Tazuna later when they were alone to keep his activities hidden from his teammates.

"Well, I didn't want to ruin the training ground with all the things I could do with my abilities so I decided to go somewhere else to train. I found this really nice forest a few miles out of the town so I stayed there the whole time." lied Naruto to the two curious people in the room.

"Oh? That's good then since I instructed Sasuke and Sakura to train there for the day. In fact, I was about to go to the bridge with Tazuna here since you weren't back yet. Thankfully you're here so you might want to freshen up first before we go to the bridge so Tazuna can get back to work." said Kakashi with a smile. He knew that Naruto was hiding something and it was really none of his business to pry unless it concerned the mission.

Naruto nodded, inwardly relieved that his one-eyed Jounin sensei didn't press him concerning his absence.

"I'm ready to go, sensei, though I wouldn't say no to a spot of lunch right now. I'm somewhat hungry." Naruto said before his stomach gave out a loud growl.

Thankfully, Tsunami walked in with a plate of food since she heard Naruto came in.

"Good thing I have your food here then. It sounds like your stomach is rebelling." Tsunami joked as she placed the plate full of food in front of a drooling blonde.

Naruto gave her a grin.

"Thank you, Tsunami-san. I really am very hungry." declared the blonde Keyblade Master before digging into his food in a speed that surprised everyone in the room. They all realized that whatever Naruto did for the past couple of days left him really hungry.

Fortunately for the blonde, Tsunami had extra food available so she brought it out which Naruto immediately devoured to the astonishment of everyone on the table. It was after four plates of food that the blonde realized something.

"Where's Haku and Zabuza-oji-san?" asked Naruto as he patted his full tummy.

"Zabuza and Haku is currently out in the surrounding forest to train. They'll be back tomorrow, I think." Kakashi informed him.

This information surprised the blonde considering that the duo's mission was over with the death of Gato.

"I wonder why they haven't left yet considering that their mission is over with Gato being dead and all." mused Naruto as he scratched his chin in thought.

"They had no plans of leaving as of yet since this is the only time they could relax and get some training in without having hunter-nins waylaying them every time." said Kakashi before pulling out an orange book that Naruto recognized causing him to blush. Kakashi saw this and gave Naruto a curious look. Thankfully, the one-eyed nin didn't say anything.

"Hmmm," said Naruto as he got his blush under control. "Why don't they come back to Konoha with us. If I remember my lessons from Iruka-sensei, if they register in another village's shinobi force then they are technically no longer missing-nins."

Kakashi gave Naruto an approving nod before answering the question.

"Technically, you would be correct. You, however, forgot that if they register as a shinobi of the Leaf then Mist might possibly retaliate because Zabuza was part of their village and held some knowledge concerning their secrets."

Naruto nodded in agreement but he realized something.

"I don't think that is a problem right now, Kakashi-sensei. Isn't Kirigakure no Sato in a civil war right now with the bloodline rebels? I don't think they could spare some manpower to hunt down Zabuza since they needed all the help they could get to make sure that the Yondaime Mizukage stayed in power. Besides, aren't the hunter-nins that hunted Zabuza usually from another village who wanted to get the bounty on his head?" Naruto asked curiously causing Kakashi to look at the blonde in a new light.

"You know, that is a very sound thinking there, Naruto. If I didn't know any better, your new abilities changed your maturity a great deal." said Kakashi in pride.

Naruto blushed from the praise and scratched the back of his head, a clear sign that he was embarrassed.

"Not really, Kakashi-sensei. I'm still the same prankster of Konohagakure no Sato but the battle at the bridge opened my eyes to the truth of the shinobi world. If I want to survive this career then I either need to shape up or quit and I would never quit. That's my nindo." declared Naruto in a determined voice that made Kakashi, Tsunami, and Tazuna nod at his declaration.

"Good since you and the rest of your teammates would be training like hell when we get back to Konoha so you better enjoy your free time now since you won't have any when we get back. That is a promise that I will never back down on." said Kakashi with fire in his eyes that made Naruto gulp.

Whatever training Kakashi had in mind, Naruto assumed it would involve a lot of pain…especially for him.

-x-x-x-x-x-

It was a week later that Team 7 left Wave Country with Zabuza and Haku towards Konoha. Thanks to his Kage Bunshins, Naruto sped up the construction of the bridge that renewed the determination of the workers to work harder. Also, the storage scrolls he gave in secret to Tazuna also helped in flaming their determination as Gato's tyranny over them was forever washed away as their assets were returned to them. Sure, they could never forget the memory of it but the return of their economy was a testament that anything was possible if you had the will to push on.

The trip back to Konoha took three days instead of a week since they didn't have any civilian with them so they traveled in shinobi speeds. There was a short delay at the Konoha Gate when the 'Eternal Chuunins', Izumo and Kotetsu, were having second thoughts in letting a well-known missing-nin into the village but Kakashi's word was enough to grant them entry.

It was a short while later that the Wave party found themselves in front of the Hokage who was giving Naruto and Haku a curious look – Naruto for his physical changes and the presence of Haku which he didn't know - while Zabuza merited a raised eyebrow considering the Demon of the Mist's status as a missing-nin.

"This is going to be an interesting story since Momochi Zabuza, A-Rank missing-nin, is here." said the aged Hokage as he took a pull from his pipe, puffing out smoke while eyeing the group of shinobis in front of him before landing on the one-eyed Jounin. "Kakashi, tell me what happened and leave nothing out."

Kakashi nodded and started his tale, starting from their meeting with the Demon Brothers until the battle at the bridge. He didn't spare any detail, especially in how Naruto changed, from his unique weapons to the abilities he displayed especially when healing a critically wounded and dying Haku. The Hokage was giving Naruto a piercing look with said blonde grinning sheepishly at him.

"I see." said the Hokage with a nod to Kakashi. "From your story, I would say that your mission would be bumped from C-Rank to A-Rank considering the strength of the opposition you encountered as you protected Tazuna from Gato. Your pay would be deposited in your respective accounts tomorrow. Team 7 except, except for Kakashi and Naruto, Zabuza and Haku, is dismissed."

Sasuke and Sakura nodded and left the office but not before shooting Naruto a curious look. When the door to the office clicked shut, the Hokage immediate raised a privacy barrier to ensure that no one would be able to listen to the conversation.

"Before we discuss Naruto's sudden change, I would like to hear directly from Zabuza concerning his request to be drafted into the Konoha military." started the Hokage seriously, telling everyone that he was in business mode, so to speak.

Zabuza coughed a bit, nervous to being in front of the person who was lauded as the God of Shinobi during the Third Great Shinobi War.

"Hokage-sama, I would like to request to be drafted into the Konoha military and swear allegiance to Konohagakure no Sato." Zabuza stated formally.

"And your reason?" the aged leader asked seriously.

"I find that I am tired from always being on the run and want to settle down without having to worry about hunter-nins and bounty hunters trying to kill me." Zabuza hesitated a bit before continuing. "Besides, I want to make sure that Haku has a safe home to return to. The life of a missing-nin is not a great way to live for my adopted son."

When he said the last part, Haku launched towards Zabuza and engulfed the clearly-embarrassed missing-nin in a big hug. Not knowing what to do in this type of situation, the Demon of the Mist just patted his adopted son on the back with a nervous tick on his non-existent eyebrow.

The Hokage stared at Zabuza for a few seconds before a smile graced his lips.

"Good. I accept your request and would like to welcome you to Konoha. You will be given a probationary Jounin status with an ANBU watching you for six months. Afterwards, you will be given an evaluation to ensure that you are trustworthy to become a permanent resident of Konohagakure no Sato." The aged leader turned to Zabuza's newly-minted adopted son. "How about young Haku? You told me that he had shinobi training?"

Haku release his adopted father and nodded to the Hokage's question before following it with an explanation.

"I was trained by Zabuza-tousan in both stealth and medical techniques though the latter was more on self-study than actual training. My clan was the bearer of the Hyouton Kekkei Genkai and I had some mastery over some of the techniques which I was able to recreate from memory."

"Hyouton Kekkei Genkai? Hmmmm…if I remember correctly, only the Yuki Clan of Kirigakure had that bloodline, correct?" this got a nod from Haku. "I see then you're the only survivor of that purge. Zabuza, what do you think is Haku's exact rank in terms of abilities considering it was you who trained him."

Zabuza thought about it for a few seconds before giving his answer.

"I would say mid-Chuunin to low-Jounin if you consider his ice techniques. Without it, Haku is clearly Chuunin material in both strength and speed." answered the ex-Demon of the Mist proudly considering he was the reason why Haku gained such strength at such a young age. This caused the Hokage to nod in agreement.

"If that is the case then both of you would be on probationary status." said the Hokage before pulling out two documents and a pair of Konoha headbands from the drawer. He passed both items to the new addition to the Konoha forces. "Here are your forehead protectors and the document that you need to fill out to finalize your addition to the Konoha Shinobi force, though Haku here would be apprenticing in the hospital to further improve his medical skills and put it to practice. Both of you need to see me tomorrow so I can both give you your respective duties. Please leave the office and give this document to the secretary outside. Wait there until I'm finished my discussion with Kakashi and Naruto."

Zabuza and Haku nodded before saying farewell to Kakashi and Naruto. After exiting the office, the Hokage reactivated the privacy barrier and beckoned for the duo to sit down.

"Now that's out of the way, why don't you start explaining to me what really happened back in Wave, Naruto-kun." asked Hokage while giving Naruto a piercing gaze.

Naruto nodded and launched to his own tale. He decided to tell the Hokage and his sensei since both were trustworthy to know his secret. He told them about Haku putting him in a death-like state which forced him to enter his mindscape. He told them that he met the Kyuubi which caused Kakashi and Sarutobi to tense but they turned curious when Naruto informed them of another person with the fox – Sora, his past self.

He explained to them his abilities as a Keyblade Master, pulling out the _Kingdom Key_ to show to both Kakashi and the Hokage whom were looking at the weapon in astonishment.

"So let me get this straight, your past self was a Keyblade Master and wasn't able to properly reincarnate into you because of the seal that the Yondaime used to imprison the Kyuubi inside. However, when you entered your mindscape and gave your permission, Sora finally combined with your soul but the merger allowed you access to his powers and abilities. Did I get all that right?" asked the Hokage as he eyed the blonde with a speculative look in his eyes.

"Hai, jiji." said Naruto with a nod.

"Hmm…if that is the case, is it possible that your children to inherit these abilities?" asked Sarutobi. Kakashi gave the Hokage a sharp look since he knew where this conversation was going.

Naruto grew thoughtful as he analyzed the question before answering.

"I'm not sure, jiji." Naruto said hesitantly. "According to Sora memories, the keyblade would determine whether the wielder is worthy or not. It doesn't discriminate between good or evil since there were some bad people in Sora's world who were pretty much demons who also utilized their own version of the weapon. However, it is possible for my children to access them it if they try hard enough considering two of Sora's friends were able to do it."

Sarutobi nodded before arriving at a decision.

"I see then I need to think on this further considering that your new abilities constitute a bloodline according to the Konoha Charter since it is a unique ability even among shinobi standards. As it stands, Naruto-kun, you need to determine the extent of your abilities considering that you lacked the time to really test its limit and you need to determine how this would affect your duties as a shinobi though I doubt that would happen since your 'bloodline' would make you a more effective shinobi in and out of the field. Such is the case, I therefore give Team 7 a month break which would be spent on individual training."

Sarutobi then turned to Kakashi who was giving him his full attention…for once.

"You are tasked to train Team 7 though you need to schedule it to give Naruto time to discover and master his newly-acquired powers. You are allowed to give them D-Rank missions but refrain from any C-Rank until the one month break ends." finished Sarutobi, gaining a nod of acceptance from the one-eyed Jounin.

"Do we have a set schedule as to when the 'event' would happen?" he asked cryptically which earned him a curious look from Naruto.

"The 'event' your referring to is still three months away so once Team 7 is finished with their break, you have two more months to either continue training them or assign them a C-Rank mission to pass the time."

Kakashi nodded and beckoned for Naruto to leave but the blonde had other ideas.

"Uh, Kakashi-sensei, I think I'll stay. I have some things I need to talk with Hokage-jiji for a bit." said Naruto hesitantly. This caused both Kakashi and the Hokage to raise an eyebrow in question; the Jounin looked at the Hokage who nodded in approval.

"Alright, Naruto. I'll just contact you regarding the training session I had planned for Team 7." Kakashi informed his blonde student who nodded in agreement. Seeing that his job was done, he disappeared from the office in a puff of smoke and leaves, leaving Naruto and the Hokage in total privacy.

"So Naruto-kun, what do you want to talk to me about?" asked Sarutobi who gave Naruto one of his rare smiles that he only showed to the blonde who he considered as a surrogate grandson.

Naruto had a mischievous glint in his eyes as he pulled out a scroll from one his many pockets causing the Hokage to eye it in suspicion.

"Jiji, is there a house somewhere in Konoha I can buy?" asked Naruto with a grin.

-x-x-x-x-x-

It has been a week since Naruto talked to the Hokage regarding the purchase of a house for his own use. When the subject of money came up, the blonde Keyblade Master was forced to inform the aged leader regarding his 'adventures' in Gato's mansion, telling him about the money he 'acquired' from the deceased business tycoon and how he split the money between him and the citizens of Wave. The Hokage didn't say anything since it was considered as 'spoils of war' that was usually awarded to the victor; and in this case, it was awarded to Naruto since he was the only one in his team to think of raiding the rich tycoon's house for their share of the loot.

The amount of money made it easier for Naruto to acquire his very own clan house in the village. In fact, the Hokage sold Naruto the deed to a property comparable to the size of the Hyuuga Compound that belonged to a clan that died out a decade ago.

Unfortunately, or fortunately in this case, the clan house was located beside the infamous Training Ground 44 or otherwise called the Forest of Death. This didn't deter Naruto from buying the house since it would suit his needs perfectly. The size of the property would give him enough space to store all the items he looted from Gato's stash and the adjoining training ground was a perfect place for him to train his abilities. He wasn't afraid of Training Ground 44's reputation since he spent some time there when he was young to hide from the villagers who were hell-bent in hurting him when the Kyuubi Festival came up. In truth, he felt at home in the forest than the village since he was relatively safe there; well, except for some animals which viewed him as a source of food.

Thankfully, Kakashi gave him and the rest of the team a week to rest before starting their training. Naruto utilized the one-week vacation to clean up and make the clan house his own.

Considering its size, he had to create a hundred or so Kage Bunshins to clean up the compound, both in and out, before unsealing the furniture he got from Gato and placed them inside. He also allocated dozen or so clones to place all the books and scrolls in a sizable library he found in the main house.

Also, there was considerable damage to some areas of the main house – whether it occurred naturally or because of a battle; so he tasked some of his clones under Henge to go into the village to purchase the necessary supplies to fix it. He personally went to the Hokage regarding the reconnection of water and electricity to the compound which was easily done since the aged leader already prepared everything in advance.

While the task of his new home was given to his clones, the blonde was busy checking out the various books and scrolls he looted from Gato's collection to see if there was some information there that he could integrate into his training program.

Of course, his luck held true and found some scrolls that would fit well with what he had in mind.

For starters, he found a scroll on a legendary taijutsu style that was said to be an ancient form of martial arts practiced by the earliest settlers of the Elemental Nation, most specifically on the vast Western Empire that was said to be home of the most powerful fighters in ancient times.

Despite the fact that the Western Empire no longer existed, the information they had regarding their prowess still existed and he was lucky that Gato loved to collect priceless tomes which the blonde now owned.

The name of the style was _Kuruda Ryu_ _Kosappo (Kuruda Style Annihilation Technique)_ and was classified into two groups – _Open Skill_ which specialized in fist-type combat, like punches and throws; and the _Shadow Skill_ showcasing the various kicking techniques and other attacks that only used the legs.

Naruto found the two styles interesting but he decided to hold on to actually trying out the various techniques since he needed to get the basics down. From the information contained in the _Kuruda Ryu_ scroll, his body didn't even meet the minimum physical requirement for the techniques. If he did learn them without the proper physical conditioning, it would either end up underpowered and useless or would end up hurting him like hell.

The basics of the _Kuruda Ryu_ require the practitioner to have sufficient leg and arm strength so he personally went one of the weapon shops in Konoha that specialized in shinobi equipment. Good thing that he was good friends with the owner, Kaito, since the old man was the few people in the village who didn't see him as the Kyuubi.

After almost an hour of haggling, he decided to purchase a set of chakra bands whose weight could be adjusted according to how much chakra was channeled into it. As indicated on the _Kuruda_ _Ryu_ scroll, he started out with 30 pounds on each limb, totaling to 120 pounds on his person.

Another useful scroll he found was a kenjutsu style called the _Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu (Flying Heaven Honorable Sword Style)_, another ancient style that specialized in speed instead of actual brute force, though the techniques showcased by the style sounded gruesome to one's enemies.

_Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu_ stressed the essence of using godlike speed to incapacitate or destroy one's opponent. Also, the style was created to tackle multiple enemies at once without losing power and speed. Despite the drawback of only using one sword, or in this case, one keyblade; Naruto decided that he would learn this kenjutsu style since he leaned more on speed rather than power.

Fortunately for Naruto, the minimum physical requirement of _Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu_ was similar to _Kuruda Ryu_ so he didn't have to worry. All he could do now was practice the katas of both styles until they became instinctual. His body would get accustomed to the movements while training his muscles to adjust to the weights. From the training program indicated on both scrolls, he would be able to try out the easiest of the techniques in both styles in the span of three months.

-x-x-x-x-x-

Naruto discovered that Kakashi, despite his lazy and laidback persona, was a sadistic bastard. Sure, he was lazy as hell and always late during team meetings but the one-eyed Jounin was a demon when it came to training. It seemed that the cyclops made do with his promise to Naruto to put them all into a hellish training program when they got back.

He didn't disappoint. In fact, he overdid it to the point that the stamina-freak Naruto and the training-demon Sasuke shivered at the hell they were put through.

The training was separated into two blocks.

The first block would be from 4 in the morning to 12 noon which consisted of physical training. This started with a warm up exercise of 20 laps around Training Ground 7, 50 push-ups, and 50 pull-ups. Once that was done, they were subjected to a two hour sprint around the same training ground until they finished or their bodies give out from the strain.

Thankfully, Naruto's stamina was up to the task but the morning physical training usually left him drained. Sasuke was of the same predicament with the program, though Sakura was the hardest hit since she wasn't in peak physical condition to begin with. As to the latter, Kakashi forced Sakura to drop her ridiculous dieting since it would eventually kill her since her body didn't have enough nutrients to handle the regimen.

After a one hour of lunch and rest, the three were given specific tasks to perform as part of their specialized training. Kakashi would be supervising Sasuke since his Sharingan was awakened during the Wave Mission. He would be teaching the lone Uchiha some techniques that Uchihas often used in combat since he had the most experience from it due to his teammate, Obito.

While he was directly training Sasuke, Kakashi would create a Kage Bunshin to help Sakura with her taijutsu style since she only had the basics from the Academy in her arsenal. The aim of this tutoring would be to improve Sakura's basics to the point that she could branch out to a more effective style or come up with an original style on her own.

Naruto, on the other hand, after telling Kakashi about his abilities, convinced the one-eyed Jounin that he didn't need physical training since he was already following his own with good results. The blonde explained to his sensei that he would be concentrating on improving his physical condition to fit with the style he had in mind for kenjutsu and taijutsu.

Of course, Kakashi was curious as to what style he was learning but he just told him that it was a secret.

Speaking of training, Naruto created his own training program derived from the combination of _Kuruda Ryu Kosappo_ and _Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu_.

He would join Team 7 during their morning physical workout since it coincided with his own program.

Afternoons was separated into two blocks, first block would be a 3-hour session doing the basic forms of _Kuruda Ryu_ _Eigi_ (Shadow Skill) for his lower body, and _Kyougi_ (Open Skill) for his upper body. Despite the fact that he preferred to use _Eigi_ due to his hands holding his keyblade, it would be better to have a solid grounding on _Kyougi_ just in case he needed to keep his weapon as a hidden ace.

The second block, which consisted of another 3-hour session, was on the basic katas of _Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu_. He used his heaviest keyblade, _Fenrir_, to gain the necessary tolerance for his muscles, as well as to improve his overall speed using his keyblades. If he was fast using the heavy _Fenrir_ then he would be faster on more lightweight version.

Of course, physical training wasn't the only thing Naruto was concentrating on during his afternoon sessions. He assigned a few clones, under disguise of course, to the Konoha library to read on the basic education that he mostly slept through during his Academy days. A few more clones were assigned to read through the book and scrolls he acquired from Gato in his personal library.

-x-x-x-x-x-

It was two weeks into the training that Naruto had time to pursue the topic of summons. He had four in his possession but he didn't know how to work it. Of course, summons wasn't included in the Academy curriculum so if you wanted to learn about them then it was best to check the information at the library.

He allocated a day for his visit since he needed a break from all the physical training he did with both Team 7 and in his personal training ground back in his compound.

Thankfully, one of his clones already spotted the scroll containing information on summons so he didn't have to waste time combing the library just to find the right one.

According to the scroll he was reading, the main clans had their own summons as part of their heritage. For example, the Sarutobi Clan was the holder of the Monkey Summoning Contract, Hatake and Inuzuka clans had Dogs, Nara had Deers, and so on; though not all of the main clans had Summoning Contracts

An exception to the rule was the Densetsu no Sannin since their summoning animals were given to them directly by the summons themselves. Jiraiya held the Toad Summoning Contract, Tsunade the Slugs, and Orochimaru for the Snakes. When Naruto read the latter, he wondered what the difference was between the Serpent Contract that he held to Orochimaru's Snake Contract. He vowed to find out later if he was able to sign multiple contracts since he was more partial to tigers than the others he had in his possession.

Further into the scroll, he finally found the information he needed.

The scroll informed Naruto that Summon Animals live in a separate realm as their own. Such is the case, bringing them into his plane of existence requires a contract between him and the Summon Animal. In order to summon them, he needed to write his name in the contract using his own blood and ending it with a handprint, also in blood. The hand used in the contract would be the same hand used to summon the animal.

Also, the scroll indicated that a Summon Animal had the right to refuse the summoner so in order to properly make use of the contract, it is best to summon the boss and ask permission to become their summoner. In most cases, it is necessary to have at least Chuunin level chakra reserves to summon the boss though more powerful animal contracts needed at least Jounin level chakra reserves.

Armed with all the information he needed for this project, Naruto replaced the scroll back to its shelf and exited the library for his home. He would be summoning the tigers tonight and see if he could get their allegiance.


	4. Important Announcement POLL UP

**Greetings, my beloved readers and followers;**

**First of all, I would like to thank everyone for your patronage of my fanstories, your many reviews and comments have helped in their development, and granted me a boon in learning and improving in the process.**

**The reason I am putting up this announcement is the lack of time I currently have to devote to my stories. Work and some issues raised its ugly head and demands quite a lot of my time, taking quite a chunk of my writing and brainstorming sessions.**

**This is why I decided to put up a poll to give you, my readers and followers, a chance to pick stories that you want me to work on. This doesn't mean that I won't be working with the rest, only that updates would be pretty slow due to the lack of time I have at my disposal.**

**Anyway, the poll is up and please pick three stories you want me to focus my attention on. The poll will be up for 2 weeks before I will post an announcement as to what stories will be updated.**

**That's it for now.**

**Cheers everyone.**

**Corruptmonk**


End file.
